On the third day of the second month of Ochieng's stay at home, he decided to take a walk with Apeleka in Kobuthi timberland. This was a place he used to visit with his father when young. Today, he was with the person he loved most.

They walked deeper and deeper into the woods storing. They played a few games as they laughed. They were enjoying this jaunt.

It was quiet rare for couples to be this close in this era. One reason was that men had several wives to take care of, giving a single one his full attention could be unfair. In Lu tribe peculiarly, a man could never be seen in any of his wives' huts. Maybe that was why wives of a Lu tribe man loved one another. Of course he copulated with them but that was at night when everyone was asleep.

A man could sneak in one of his women's hut very late in the night, do his business and walk away before the first c.o.c.k crow which is about three in the morning. He could begin with the first wife to the last one in different days and then start again from the first wife, but that was not necessarily the cycle, everything depended exclusively on the man. It was however unknown to anyone the hut he went to at night except him and the wife he visited.If it was food, all the women cooked and brought their food to their man in his hut. So in each and every meal he tasted food from all his wives.

During the day, men and women attended to very different duties. Men were ever in the field either hunting or training for war or in the farms or grazing for the young men. Women most of the times were at home, cleaning or cooking or storing with other women or working on the small gardens cultivating vegetables. It is then intelligible how the interaction between men and women was very low.

Ochieng' and Apeleka were entirely different. First of all they were from different ethical backgrounds. It was very difficult to forge a relations.h.i.+p between two people from different communities especially between the Lang tribe and other communities. Ochieng' knew this but managed to convince his people to accept Apeleka and her mother as their own though he had not confirmed the marriage between him and Apeleka.

Secondly, it was for how difficult it was to be very close for people of different s.e.xuality, but things were the other way round when it came to Ochieng' and Apeleka. Apeleka was someone who had been rejected like infestation. Only Ochieng', her mother and a beast had accepted her. Ochieng' had grown up with beasts. When he almost forgot with the existence of fellow human beings, Apeleka appeared. In a nutsh.e.l.l, they had met in a place where human beings were a nihility. The moment they set their on each other, indefinable emotions had to surge. Patently, they had to be close regardless of the time they had spent together.

"I didn't know there were people still capable of maiming me." Ochieng' said shaking his head bitterly.

"I don't think that is the case."

Before Apeleka said anything, they heard a beautiful voice above their heads. The voice was undoubtedly Jakony's. The bird descended and landed on Ochieng's right shoulder such that it was in the middle of the couple.

"What do you mean?" Ochieng' asked dis...o...b..bulated.

"The problem is not that you are weak..I have been checking your body, I am very sure you are unvanquishable among your fellow human beings..."

"What?!" Ochieng' interrupted in astonishment.

"The other day you almost lost because the wizard first showed his ability. Since you have abilities that you yourself don't even know, you thought he was powerful than you are and in you something was ingrained."

"What was that?" Apeleka was the one who questioned this time.

"Fear. The moment Ochieng' saw the man's power, he was shrouded with fear. There's nothing worse than fear in this world. It is just an illusion that makes the strong b.u.mble and the weak die for no good reasons. Those who stood against fear managed to overcome the impossibilities."

"Take Nyakam for example, she was only a woman and a plebeian from a very small clan in Lu tribe. She was also a wuss but she infiltrated the forbidden land, a land that even the great Luanda Magere was timorous of. Apeleka was left in the same place to die but she didn't. Ochieng', you stayed there for over fifty seasons but look at you, you're not only alive but also very powerful. Apeleka is also able to regenerate. Of course that land has the most dangerous creatures this world can think of, you dared to go, see what you gained."

"Fear can make you bow for a tyke, it can make you run away from blessings, it can block your eyes from seeing what this world has for you. The moment you overcome this monster, you will roam the world and achieve things that many people only saw in the world of fantasy."

The bird spoke moving it's head and wings in a terpsich.o.r.ean manner. Added to her voice was an enthralling tune immersing Ochieng' and Apeleka into her words wisdom.

When it stopped, it flew to a nearby tree and started singing a very beautiful song. The couple stopped moving. They sat on the ground full of gra.s.s cross legged and closed their eyes as if meditating.

The words of the bird rang in their minds. The zephyr from the surrounding hit their body making them smile in pleasance. After fifteen minutes, Ochieng' stood up hit by inspiration. He heaved a long sigh and without knowing, his body was covered with red flames. What was strange was that neither himself or his skin cloth was burned.

His eyes turned red and his surrounding became extremely clear. He started making the fighting movements he had been taught by his ancestors in his dreams. The leaves on the ground rose due to the violent winds that were produced from his training. Even Apeleka found it difficult to breathe. She however sat there, as if nothing was happening.

The bird stopped singing after around thirty minutes. The two woke up from their enchantment. They turned to the bird and looked at it in wonderment. It had helped them a lot this time. Ochieng' had gained a lot of understanding of his abilities. Apeleka who only knew of her regeneration ability was even astounded when she felt how strong she currently was.

"Congratulations my brother and sister." Ignoring the looks of the couple, the beast congratulated them delightfully.

"If you don't mind Jakony, please tell us more about yourself. You amaze me with your abilities all the time. The more I see you unleas.h.i.+ng them the more the feeling of not knowing you at all grows in me. Are you really from the forbidden land? If you really are, why aren't you even known to the other beasts and why are you extraordinary? Please tell me today to at least have a peace of mind." Ochieng' inveigled the animal softly.

"If you want to know, I won't mind sharing with you my story but on one condition."

"What condition?" The two asked simultaneously their eyes glowing in antic.i.p.ation.

"You must not tell anyone."

"Deal." They again agreed at the same time.

"So, it is like this... "